Sentimentality
by eswigag
Summary: "But Anna always touched the long dark hair she had, and now it was all burned away." Anna/Ruby femslash. Set S5, during "Abandon All Hope..."


**Warnings for:** language, body horror, in-universe character negativity (Ruby towards Castiel, the Harvelles, the Winchesters).

* * *

Ruby laid in the street, burning worse than she even remembered in Hell. After awhile, fire became another pain she adjusted to, another torment to bear and survive as part of being demon. She had burned so long, it became part of her, fire, smoke, and brimstone. Not this. Something that destroyed the outside and then went deeper, acid that ate away her skin and tissue and started at her poor excuse of a soul. It'd become scarred and tough as shit from hell, but it found weak spots all the same.

A fucking iron-and-salt bomb. Goddamn unbelievable. Ruby would've tried to hunt down the hunters responsible and give them every inch of the slow, sticky death they were asking for, if she hadn't smelled the stink of rotting blood and burning flesh entrenching the store and known that the bitches had set it off while they were still inside. Ruby took some pleasure in that; she just hoped they hadn't died too quickly, 'cause she sure wasn't.

She might die soon enough though, with all the reapers she'd seen fill this town before the bomb went off. Death himself was scheduled to show up any minute now and if she kept lying in the street like a dead human, he might just mistake her for one and take her.

She tried to get up and gauged that she was lying face-first in the street. Fine. She tried pushing herself off the ground, tried pressing both hands down, dragging semi-functional legs beneath her in a slow crouch. It was an outrageous amount of pain compared to how little was left of her body. She was charred, melted flesh in a vaguely human shape. Lucifer would fix it for her, wouldn't he? Would he expect her to ask for healing or would he expect her to just find another body? They usually just did that. Ruby would've, she didn't care what she looked like and neither did Lucifer and neither did Meg or the others, but -

(but Anna always touched the long dark hair she had, and now it was all burned away)

\- but Ruby had gotten a little fond of this body, she guessed. So sue her, she was sentimental. This body was the one she wore when she helped Lucifer rise. And it brought out the worst memories in the Winchesters that were a fucking treat to see.

She staggered to her feet, never even crying out or gasping at the agony she hadn't yet gotten used to. She was _pretty_ sure she didn't make a noise, anyway. She didn't think her throat was capable of making noise at the moment, but she couldn't _hear_ anything besides the high-pitched shrieking. She figured it was either the after-effects of the explosion or her screaming non-stop without realizing it. Could've been either. Hell, could've been both.

She forced the ruined body back down the street she'd come from. Meg would be there, guarding the angel. Anna's old _"friend."_ Yeah fucking right.

Ruby had told Lucifer all about Anna, how she was fallen too, how she hated Heaven, how she worked with Ruby even though she was a demon - the kind of asset she'd be to them if Lucifer could just find her for Ruby and let Ruby talk to her. Her heart sank at Lucifer's frown as he told her, "She's in Heaven," told her that even he couldn't go to Heaven to save her until Michael and Raphael were gone and their wards against him broken.

Ruby remembered what Anna had told her, that last time they'd seen each other. How Castiel would be tortured for his disobedience. How distraught Anna had been, how completely convinced she was that even she couldn't save him. And off Anna went, off to find out more about why he'd been captured. Then suddenly Anna was the one in Heaven and Castiel was the one free, friends with the Winchesters the same way he'd been friends with Anna. What a coincidence.

Yeah right. Ruby could read between the lines. That fuck had been playing Anna, luring her in so that he could spring the trap and get her caught, because they knew, they fucking _knew_ they wouldn't be able to take her otherwise.

Anna should've listened to her. How many times had Ruby argued with her over him? Over trying to reach out for someone who would've killed her without blinking when she was terrified and desperate and didn't even know who he was or why he was killing her?

Fuck him. And fuck Anna for not listening. She'd be getting one big, fat "I told you so."

And as for her buddy Castiel, well. Lucifer had _hoped_ he'd join them (the way _Anna_ was supposed to, and didn't that just piss Ruby off). Had _offered_ him as much. And Castiel had spat in Lucifer's face. Ruby would be very, very happy when Lucifer killed him the way he deserved. The scum who betrayed Anna dead, one less angel in the world, and one less player on Sam and Dean's team.

Ruby had tried to warn Sam, when the blonde was bleeding out in her crying mommy's arms. Ruby was prowling outside, coming up to the door to call inside, offering to help the girl if Sam was just come with her and taking all the insults she'd expected from them in stride. Patience worked best with Sam and lucky her, Ruby had _learned_ patience from dealing with him and his dumbass brother. Ruby did all that and more. She had gone out of her way to try to make it easier for Sam, cushion the blow Castiel's disappearance would cause, told him how he wasn't to be trusted, told him how he'd betrayed Anna when they were supposed to be "friends," too.

Then she dodged the gunshot that came her way. It was pretty easy to see coming. Predictable fucking Dean.

The explosion was harder to dodge and she had to admit, it worked way too well. Since it was actually a _smart_ idea, Ruby got the distinct impression it wasn't Dean's. Or Sam's. Good thing the Harvelles had done everyone a favor and taken _themselves_ out of the picture, or Ruby might actually be worried.

But no, Ruby knew they were going to win. She could just feel it, that electric charge of certainty, of seeing all the dominoes fall as they're supposed to, _boom, boom, boom, boom_. Normally she'd just take her time and enjoy the ride, but she was working harder than ever to make sure it ended soon.

The Apocalypse was finally here, and she had an angel to rescue from Heaven.

Whoever said there was no rest for the wicked really knew what they were talking about.


End file.
